I think probably many of the fans singing have no idea of its origins or what it's about..

Cranberries' Zombie plays after victory

- SANDRA MALLON

THE father of a victim of an IRA bombing has backed Irish rugby fans singing The Cranberries' song Zombie about the atrocity.

But Colin Parry, whose son Tim, 12, was killed in Warrington along with three-year-old Jonathan Bell in 1993, said he doesn't want the team using it as their anthem.

The late Dolores O'Riordan penned the song about the bombing, and it is now being belted out in stadiums as the Irish rugby team's unofficial anthem when they win a match.

The song has sparked a debate amongst fans, with some claiming it wasn't appropriate for big sporting occasions, given its about an IRA atrocity.

However others have blasted the song for being anti-republican, and giving a simplistic view of a conflict that had violence on both sides.

It also comes after the Irish women's football team were forced to apologise last year for singing the Wolfe Tones song, Celtic Symphony, after qualifying for the World CUP. The song includes the line ooh, ah, up the 'RA'.

Colin said: "To be honest, I didn't know it had been [played], so it is news to me.

"I am aware of the origins of the song and my interpretation of the song, though who knows whether I am right or not.